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I’m always posting updates about our ringing activities on this blog but haven’t as yet posted much about what we have learned from those birds. Of course a lot of the information which we  send to the British Trust for Ornithology concerns biometrics. age categories and dates of occurrence but from our point  of view the most eagerly awaited aspect of ringing is receiving information on recoveries (ringed birds found, living or dead, by the public) and controls (ringed birds re-trapped by other ringers).

Here I present a series of recoveries and controls of birds we have trapped in Dorset over the last couple of years. This is by no means a complete list, but does cover the majority that involve recoveries/controls outside of Dorset. Among the many other within county notifications we have received are;

Sparrowhawk ringed at Durlston, found dead a year later in Christchurch, a Barn Owl ringed as a nestling in north Dorset was controlled near Wareham, a Snipe ringed near Wareham was shot nearby 27 days later, a Woodpigeon ringed in Upton was shot at Lytchett Minster 18 months later, a Herring Gull movement from Weymouth to Brownsea Island was recorded, a nestling Great Black-backed Gull ringed in Weymouth and found long dead on Brownsea Island, a Coal Tit ringed at Lytchett Matravers was killed by a cat in Broadstone a few weeks later.

All the movements below have to be interpreted in context of the birds known migration patterns, for example the Blackcap below probably migrated south to the Mediterranean or north Africa before heading north in the spring to Norway.

Changes in font size have no significance and are just a result of ‘cut and paste’!

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Oystercatcher 

An adult ringed 5/2/98 in Poole Harbour; retrapped 24/3/12 on Brownsea Island  – 5159 days later.

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Dunlin

A first year ringed 11/8/13 at Makkevika, Giske, More og Romsdal, Norway; 08/09/13 controlled Brownsea Island, Poole

We have also recorded same season movements of ringed birds between Brownsea Island and other points in Poole Harbour.

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Sandwich Tern

An adult ringed 5/9/09 Brownsea Island, Poole; found with a broken wing at Pendeen, Cornwall on 4/4/13

A chick ringed 23/06/05 Pylewell Lake, Lisle Court, Hampshire on;  controlled 2/9/12 Brownsea Island, Poole 

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Kingfisher

A first year bird that we ringed at Lytchett Bay in August 2012 was retrapped at Fleets Lane in October 2013. As Kingfishers do not breed around Poole this must be a returning wintering/migrant bird. Unlike the other species this photo is of the actual bird concerned.

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Reed Warbler 

Ringed 21/8/13 Fleets Lane Poole, controlled 28/9/13 Longham Lakes, Poole – a movement of only 7km but a weight increase from 11.1 – 15.9g in a week!

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Sedge Warbler

First year, ringed 5/8/11 Lytchett Bay, Poole, controlled 16/8/11 Palencia, Spain – controlled after 11 days but it took two years for us to be notified.

First year, ringed 6/8/13 Lytchett Bay, Poole; controlled 12/8/13 Sandouville, Seine-Maritime, France  = 6 days

First year, ringed 10/8/13 Lytchett Bay, Poole; controlled 14/8/13 Le Tetre Rouge, Bouee, Loire Atlantique, France   = 4 days

First year, ringed 11/8/13 Lytchett Bay, Poole; controlled 19/8/13 Tour aux Moutons, Donges, Loire-Atlantique, France = 8 days

First year, ringed 30/7/11 Lytchett Bay, Poole; controlled  14/8/12 Etang de Moisan, Messanges, Landes, France 

First year ringed 30/8/12 Gunwalloe, Cornwall; controlled 08/09/12 Lytchett Bay, Poole

Also one ringed in autumn at Portland Bird Observatory was re-trapped at Durlston the following day and one ringed near Stalbridge was controlled at Lytchett Bay 13 days later.

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Blackcap

First year female, ringed 8/9/12 Durlston CP controlled 16/3/13 Utsira, Rogaland, Norway

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Chiffchaff

Juvenile ringed at Thornton, Yorkshire on 17/8/11; controlled 7/4/12 Durlston CP

First year ringed 22/9/11 Wigan, Greater Manchester; controlled 23/3/13 Fleets Lane,Poole 

First year ringed 15/12/11  Durlston CP; controlled 31/3/12 Portland Bill 

First year ringed 19/9/12 Kenfig Pool, Bridgend, South Wales ; controlled 27/9/12 Durlston CP 

Ringed 29/9/11 Durlston CP  controlled 18/10/11 Embalse de Pedrezuela, Guadalix de la Sierra, Madrid, Spain

Ringed near  15/10/11 Stalbridge; controlled  13/4/13 Stanford Reservoir, Northants.

Also one ringed in the winter at Fleets Lane was killed when it entered a building 13 days later. We have also have had three examples of wintering birds being retrapped in subsequent winters, one of them present over three successive winters.

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Cetti’s Warbler

Unknown age, ringed 16/10/12 Lytchett Bay, Poole; controlled 4/5/13 Burgh Castle, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk

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Barn Swallow

Ringed as a nestling 25/6/12 Broom House Farm, near South Wingfield, Derbyshire; controlled 13/09/12 Lytchett Bay, Poole

Ringed as a nestling 11/8/12 Spetisbury; controlled 7/9/12 Lytchett Bay, Poole

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Goldfinch

A first year ringed 2/12/10 Woolgarston Dorset ; controlled 21/8/12 Mickley Square Football Field, Northumberland 

A first year ringed at Upton, Poole on 3/2/13; found dead 3/7/13 Witham Friary, Frome, Somerset 

also one ringed 14/9/11 at Lytchett Bay was found dead having hit a window at Merley 14 months only and one ringed at Martinstown was controlled at Durlston two months later.

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Greenfinch

An adult ringed 11/2/13 Durlston CP; found dead 13/7/13 Barnham, West Sussex

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Siskin

Adult male ringed 20/1/13 Woolgarston; killed by a cat 30/4/13  at Crosshill, South Ayrshire

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